Brandon Mashinter

The dust still may be settling on the Blackhawks' season after their loss to the Blues in Game 7 of the Western Conference quarterfinals on Monday night, but it's never too early to take a look at five pressing matters for the 2016-17 campaign.

What's the deal with the Hawks and the NHL salary cap and what does it mean for their roster?

If it's the offseason, it must be time to start worrying about the cap. Here's a stunner: The Hawks are again in trouble when it comes to room under the cap, which is projected to be around $74 million if the NHLPA agrees to exercise its escalator clause.

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The dust still may be settling on the Blackhawks' season after their loss to the Blues in Game 7 of the Western Conference quarterfinals on Monday night, but it's never too early to take a look at five pressing matters for the 2016-17 campaign.
What's...

An exasperated Joel Quenneville widened his eyes, raised his arms and stormed off in a huff straight into a YouTube video.
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Stan Bowman graduated from Notre Dame in 1995 with a degree in finance.That has come in handy during the NHL's salary-cap era as the Blackhawks general manager perhaps more than anyone in the league the last few seasons has had to work the numbers hard to...

With a 4 p.m. NHL roster deadline looming Tuesday, the Blackhawks pared down to a 23-man lineup compliant with the salary cap. The team will enter the regular season, which starts Thursday, with 13 forwards, eight defensemen and two goalies.
The Hawks...

The Blackhawks weren't on the ice Monday as the team chose to use one of the last few days before the start of the season for a team bonding trip that included time on the golf course.
Meanwhile, Nick Leddy skated with his new teammates in New York.
...

One more to go.
The Chicago Blackhawks reduced their roster to 24 when they assigned defensemen T.J. Brennan and Villi Pokka to Rockford of the AHL on Monday. The two players are new to the organization after being acquired from the New York Islanders...